According to the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), efforts are underway to bring more affordable smartphones to the Nigerian market.
During a media conference with journalists in Abuja on Friday, Dr. Aminu Maida, the Executive Vice Chairman of the NCC, made this statement.
According to the DAILY POST, severe inflation and currency depreciation caused phone prices in Nigeria to hit all-time highs in 2026, making even low-cost devices pricey. While mid-range smartphones, such as the Infinix Hot 60 Pro and Techno Spark 40 Pro, range from N150,000 to over N250,000, entry-level models typic
According to Nigeria’s 2026 phone market highlights, the budget segment costs between N100k and N200k. This market is dominated by devices like the Samsung Galaxy A07, N168,869, and Redmi 15C, N176,999.
Higher specifications are available in the mid-range segment, which costs between N200k and N400k. Examples of these phones are the Tecno Spark 40 Pro Plus, which costs about N283,800, and the Infinix Hot 60 Pro, which costs N240,400.
High-end phones costing N500,000 or more include the Tecno Phantom X5 Pro, which costs over N550,000, and the new Samsung Galaxy Z Fold/Flip series, which costs more than N1.6 million.
Used Devices: For less than N495,000, “UK Used” options such as the iPhone 11 Pro Max are often sought after.
Experts claim that factors contributing to high phone costs include the foreign exchange rate, import
The EVC stated, “We are looking at how cheaper smart phones can be introduced into the market.”
However, the numbers show that more people are switching to 4G despite this. 3G and 2G devices are becoming less popular.
“I believe that over 52% of users are currently using 4G, so this alone is also demonstrating that a shift towards smartphone usage is taking place.”
The EVC stated earlier in his opening remarks that the Commission has benefited greatly from media coverage of the telecommunications industry.
He claims that this has enabled the industry “to implement our policies, keep the general public up to date in terms of progress, and also, most importantly, for me, to hold us accountable.”
Our philosophy is that of transparency. You’ve seen that through the tariff simplification directive we gave which we are currently, it’s not 100% compliance, because there’s a little bit of technical details behind getting the compliance.
“We also have the major outage Reporting Portal for which a lot of you have reported and highlighted, and, you know, drawn the attention of even senior government stakeholders to some of the issues which the industry is facing, particularly fiber cuts that sometimes, despite our efforts, we need your help in terms of bringing that awareness to the general public so we thank you for that.”
The EVC also mentioned the Corporate Governance guidelines, which the Commission gave a 24 month compliance deadline that is ongoing in the 24 months and expires next year, end of quarter one; the settlement of the USSD debt and other general issues regarding the sustainability of the industry.
The EVC also discussed the USSD debt settlement, general concerns about the industry’s sustainability, and the Corporate Governance guidelines, for which the Commission issued a 24-month compliance deadline that is currently in effect and expires at the end of the first quarter of next year.
Among other things, Maida stated that the Commission’s cooperation with the Office of the National Security Advisor in operationalizing the vital national infrastructure has been extremely successful and is starting to pay off.
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